Missouri State Bears wide receiver Malik Earl (17) talks to his teammates in a huddle prior to the start of the game against the Youngstown State Penguins on Nov. 19, 2016. Earl, a senior, was selected to the Missouri Valley Football Conference 2017 Preseason First Team after catching 41 passes for 534 yards and 3 touchdowns last season. News-Leader file photo

Missouri State Bears wide receiver Malik Earl (17) leads a huddle of Bears players prior to the start of the Missouri State Bears season opener game against the Southwestern College Moundbuilders at Robert W. Plaster Stadium in Springfield, Mo. on Sept. 1, 2016. The Bears won the game 57-0. Guillermo Hernandez Martinez/News-Leader

Missouri State Bears wide receiver Malik Earl (17) fights off Racer defenders during second quarter action of the NCAA football game between the Missouri State Bears and Murray State Racers held at Roy Stewart Stadium in Murray, Ky. on Sept. 10, 2016. The Bears won the game 28-22. Guillermo Hernandez Martinez/News-Leader

Missouri State Bears wide receiver Malik Earl (17) is tackled by cornerback Robert Thomas (3) and linebacker Gary Ernest (43) during the Missouri State Bears Maroon & White Spring Football Game held at Robert W. Plaster Stadium in Springfield, Mo. on April 23, 2016. Guillermo Hernandez Martinez/News-Leader

Missouri State Bears wide receiver Malik Earl (17) goes airborne after being tackled during third quarter action of the Bears' game against the Indiana State Sycamores at Robert W. Plaster Stadium in Springfield, Mo. on Oct. 3, 2015. Indiana State won the game 56-28. Guillermo Hernandez Martinez/News-Leader

FRISCO, Texas---The saying goes that one never gets a second chance to make a first impression, an adage that holds especially true for NFL rookies.

That’s because league coaches and personnel types make instant judgments on players based on work habits, personalities and little things like how they handle adversity and how quickly they can absorb new information.

Some rookies make great first impressions while others don’t. Well, former Missouri State receiver Malik Earl, who just finished a two-day rookie minicamp with the Dallas Cowboys, falls into that first group.

“Right away, we sent him formations to learn. I said I’d like these learned by the time you come here (for minicamp),” Cowboys receivers coach Sanjay Lal said. “The first meeting, we put them on the board and Malik was on it. Right away, he showed me he’s committed, he’s going to do the work. Very good eye contact in meetings, he’s absorbing the information, he’s translating it out here (on the field). We’re asking him to do some route stuff that a tall, long-legged guy generally has trouble with and he’s picking it up very well.”

Learning new things quickly, whether it’s on the field or in the classroom, has always come easy for Earl thanks to his photographic memory. “Football is so natural to me. Just combining that and methods I use in the classroom, just trying to piece information together the best way that I can,” he said. “I am a visual learner. I just take pictures of things and mentally try to piece them together.”

Malik Earl of the Dallas Cowboys during rookie minicamp practices at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 12, 2018.(Photo: James D. Smith/Dallas Cowboys)

“I’m able to do that in football a lot just because I’ve been doing this so long. I know how to pick up on certain things, how to differentiate between certain formations. It just comes naturally. That’s something I’m very appreciative of, but at the same time, it’s something I put in a lot of work for. That’s something I will continue to do throughout this process.”

Earl joins a Dallas team whose receiving corps is currently without a true No. 1 receiver after the recent release of Dez Bryant and the retirement of All-Pro tight end Jason Witten. But judging from Lal’s comments, Earl was far from out of his depth during this camp.

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In fact, he’s in his element and confident after coming to the Cowboys facility already well prepared, an approach he learned during his time with the Bears, who he was a captain for as a junior and senior.

“Kind of bittersweet. Love the program,” Earl said of his time in Springfield. “I couldn’t have asked for better coaches because Coach Allen, he threw me in the fire as a freshman. That’s something I’m very appreciative of because it allowed me to mature quicker and just let my personality show because I’m a natural-born leader.”

Malik Earl of the Dallas Cowboys during rookie minicamp practices at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 12, 2018.(Photo: James D. Smith/Dallas Cowboys)

“The only negative is I just wish I could’ve helped the team to more wins. Springfield is due for a winning team and I think Coach Steckel is working on that still. He’s a great coach and he’s got the team going in the right direction, we just need to get to that destination.”

The two-day camp, which featured two daily practices with plenty of meetings sprinkled in, was a whirlwind experience for Earl and his fellow rookies. However, one part of the weekend which stuck with him came on Friday afternoon when after some on-field work, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett took the rookies and the entire coaching staff to a display just inside the team facility, one which features the iconic Dallas star and reminds all that it is a privilege, not a right to play and work for the Dallas Cowboys, a poignant message which really impacted him.

Malik Earl of the Dallas Cowboys during rookie minicamp practices at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 12, 2018.(Photo: James D. Smith/Dallas Cowboys)

“Kind of surreal honestly, just being in that moment,” he said. “I was standing right behind him (Garrett). I’m sitting there thinking this is the opportunity of a lifetime. I was visualizing the ways I plan to take advantage of this opportunity. Moving forward, that’s just my focus day in, day out - being a sponge, making sure these coaches don’t have to tell me to do the same thing over and over. I’m very thankful for this opportunity, very thankful for the opportunity that Missouri State gave me, very grateful for the city and the overwhelming support. Hopefully that continues.”